Archive for July, 2013

While a large number of Greeks is preparing for their summer holidays there is no shortage of bad news to take along.

The shutting down of ERT (Greek Radio and Television public broadcasting company) which shook Greek society in an unexpected way-is followed by the dismantling of the Municipal Police and the transfer of its employees to other posts. This on Friday because today, Saturday, we learnt that the school janitors’ posts are also cancelled!.

The government claims all this is happening to satisfy the Troika demands of “less civil servants”. Unfortunately, if this is their aim they are making a mess of it. There is a large number of civil servants who have been found guilty of negligence or misconduct and should be fired. Instead of targeting them the government is looking for easier prey thus increasing the insecurity of the population and the feeling of lawlessness that seems to dominate all aspects of life: the no-smoking ban has gone up in smoke, restaurants and coffee shops give you receipts but night clubs and bars often get away with it and tax evade freely. Technicians and repair men rarely gave receipts even before the crisis but a look at the social benefits their taxes give them it is small wonder no one wants to pay them.

The Greek state should find a way to convince the people that this time there will be a modern administration, an efficient health care system, a high quality education system, a reliable mass transport system and better infrastructure: in other words that the tax payers’money will go where it is needed and for the common good. This is the only way to attack tax evasion and promote good governance all round.